Why the Olympics still has a doping problem
Cheating with drugs has again become an organised affair
NOT SO LONG ago it seemed that the Olympics was winning its battle with drug cheats. Retests of samples from competitors at the Beijing and London games led to more than 100 medalists being disqualified for doping. This tally highlighted the prevalence of drugtaking in Olympic sports, but also the success of anti-doping authorities. The creation of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in 1999 had shown that the sports world was serious about ending cheating. High-profile dopers, such as Marion Jones, an American athlete, were punished retroactively. Meanwhile a new generation of athletes like Usain Bolt and Michael Phelps broke records without the help of banned substances.
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